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Paul Osuyi, Asaba
There will be no Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps for potential victims of the predicted flood in Delta State, this year, the state government has disclosed. The government said the decision to rule out regular IDP camps, is to conform to COVID-19 protocol. Temporary IDP camps also known as holding camps in Delta official quarters, have become regular features in the state as a result of annual flooding caused by the overflow of River Niger. In place of the usual holding camps, the government has urged members of the 2020 Flood Disaster Management Committee to liaise with local government council chairmen to locate places of safety where displaced persons could be sheltered during the flooding. Inaugurating the 10-member committee, Secretary to the State Government, Chiedu Ebie, also urged the committee to identify credible leadership structures including traditional rulers and presidents general through which government could mitigate adverse effects of the flood in vulnerable communities.
Ebie, who is the chairman of the committee, stated that government would adopt a different strategy in catering for displaced persons this year. He emphasised that attention would be more on sensitising the people on the impending flooding through advocacy. Other members of the committee are: Commissioner for Special Duties, Omamofe Pirah (co-chairman); Commissioner for Information, Charles Aniagwu; and Commissioner for Environment, Christian Onogba. Others are: Chairman of Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON) in the state, Itiako Ikpokpo; Director-General of the state Orientation Bureau, Eugene Uzum; Executive Assistant to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa on Special Duties, Benjamin Efokodo; and Senior Special Assistant to the Governor, SSG office, Jerome Morka.
